UK recession means British people bargain hunt says Poundland research

We're a nation of savvy shoppers! British people spend up to 130 days of their lives bargain hunting
Due to recession, 56% of British families have halved their weekly spendAnd 44% now omit alcohol from their shopping basketsAnd 5% would even damage an item in store to get a discount

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UPDATED:

13:25 GMT, 24 October 2012

Britain is a nation of bargain hunters, with the savviest among us spending up to 130 days of our life searching for the ultimate value-for-money deal.

Hit by major recession, Brits are increasingly going to remarkable lengths to save money.

A decade ago customers spent an average of five minutes contemplating prices, but many of today's shoppers spend at least 20 minutes in the aisles – and nine per cent of keen bargain hunters take a calculator with them.

The ultimate bargain hunter David Dickinson, left, and British supermodel Kate Moss, right, has only popcorn to her shopping list

Research conducted by budget retailer Poundland shows that over 56 per cent of British families have cut back more than half of their weekly spend since recession hit.

Jim McCarthy, CEO at Poundland, who conducted the research into weekly spending habits, said: 'More than ever, the pressure is on shoppers to make their money stretch further as they spend increasing amounts of time and energy worrying about how to avoid going over budget.

'Poundland attracts savvy shoppers who know what a real bargain looks like. With every item priced at just 1, there won't be any nasty surprises at the checkout.'

With shoppers ditching luxuries such as expensive clothes, customers will be swarming to bargain basements such as this flagship Primark store on Oxford Street

Three quarters of shoppers have ditched luxuries such as clothes, and almost half of UK families have stopped purchasing air fresheners.

BARGAIN HUNTING BEHAVIOUR REVEALEDSome 96 per cent of shoppers scour up to three stores each week, hunting for the best priceOver 71 per cent of customers wander slowly up and down every aisle looking for deals Almost a third (32 per cent) go shopping at certain times of day when they know prices will be reduced in store A cheeky one in ten (13 per cent) try their luck at haggling the price downAnd five per cent would even damage an item to get a discount off at the till!

Thirsty adults are also leaving temptation at the door, with 44 per cent omitting alcohol from their baskets.

Thanks to the recession, Britain has
seen a sharp decline in the amount of 'fun' family purchases or things
that will 'make the kids smile'.

Mr McCarthy continued: 'It's a sad reality that families are cutting back on 'treat' items and sticking to the real essentials.

Yet while over 90 per cent of us visit 156 stores annually in order to bag the best bargains, the survey also reveals that we Brits are not half as strict or savvy as we could be.

Nearly half (44 per cent) of families said they don't add up the total of their basket as they go around the store and just 'hope for the best' when they get to the checkout.

Moreover, 90 per cent of people who write a grocery list then don’t stick to it.